Vydar continues casting fire bolt until the ice is sufficiently destroyed. Then he nods to the questions he’s told to ask.
Once the scroll is activated he repeats the questions (minus the disregarded ones) to the scull they are assuming belongs to Namset. Starting with liras question. “What do you know about Sheerlea?”
The skull's mouth seems to move as the voice of a woman is heard.
"Ah, Shareella was my beloved. The most beautiful person in the kingdom, loved by all for her kindness and generosity. First a slave, then concubine, then bride, a Sultana. My lover. Throat sliced open....Blood, Blood, Blood." The empty eye sockets seem to grow distant as if the answer was all the magic could pull from her.
Amdaeng held Ning tightly......this was all a little too......ghost story for her, she much preferred the company of the living even if they were trying to kill her.
"Hm...We could try asking for more information aboutAkharis and his powers. Maybe that would help with breaking this ritual since it seems like he created it...Also the Cult of the Dragon. Their symbol is on the door to this chamber, after all."
"Make each question count. The more we know about the ritual, the cult, or anything could help."
Zarbyn moves into the room so that he is closer to Amdaeng.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"A rightful place awaits you in the Realms Above, in the Land of the Great Light. Come in peace, and live beneath the sun again, where trees and flowers grow."
— The message of Eilistraee to all decent drow.
"Run thy sword across my chains, Silver Lady, that I may join your dance.”
"Hm...We could try asking for more information aboutAkharis and his powers. Maybe that would help with breaking this ritual since it seems like he created it...Also the Cult of the Dragon. Their symbol is on the door to this chamber, after all."
'Cult of the Dragon, Akharis, yes: those are good topics.' Iólinder concurred. He turned his attention to the animated corpse.
'What can you tell us about Akharis and the powers he possessed?'
As Vydar translatesIólinder‘s question, The eyes of the skull glow blue as the dead woman answers the second question.
"The Sultan Akharis was a cruel and arrogant ruler. He had three wives, Shareella being the third, but had a large number of concubines. He built this palace to get away from the heat of the desert. He believed that he was chosen by the gods to rule, and...that he was as powerful as the gods. He was jealous and controlling of his brides. He had some powers. He was very strong and was said to have lived over 100 years, although he seemed to not grow older. He could use magic to command obedience, he could burn people alive with a word. He had unquestioning loyalty of his subjects and took many slaves. To disobey the Sultan was to disobey god. He ordered the death of his guards, suspecting one of them of being intimate with Shareella."
Vydar translates the skulls response. Meanwhile, the busy ghostly girl continues on her path, heading back for the 11th head.
Amdaeng was feeling uncomfortable, the description of the sultan and his tyrannical behaviour reminded her a lot of Sukumvit Charavask, the Baron of her home city of Fang.....though as far as she knew he wasn't immortal.
Vydar is clearly uncomfortable with having to be the translator. But he tries to cover this up without letting the discomfort distract him. After recounting the scull's last answer, he turns back to the scull.
"Can you give us the details of the events leading up to your death?"
"I was dragged into this room. On the floor was the sultans guards, their heads all cut off. There was blood everywhere. Shareella was brought forward to this spot. A single coffin was in the middle of the dias, with the lid off. He made Shareella and I kneel and face each other. Then he took a blade and sliced my throat. As the light left my eyes and I went to sleep, I remember her eyes, filled with compassion and sadness and his eyes, filled with hatred and contempt."
"If they were brought before this stone coffin with the apparent intent that they would be entombed together then how did she end up down the well with her daughter?"
Zarbyn feels like everything they discover matches some part of the stories they've heard but isn't sure what exactly corresponds to the present ritual.
"Could the coffin serve as a reminder of their horrible fate? Maybe ask something about the significance of the coffin?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"A rightful place awaits you in the Realms Above, in the Land of the Great Light. Come in peace, and live beneath the sun again, where trees and flowers grow."
— The message of Eilistraee to all decent drow.
"Run thy sword across my chains, Silver Lady, that I may join your dance.”
"It's strange...She didn't mention her daughter at all. Maybe the girl was brought in here after it all was said and done." Lira frowns sadly, perplexed. "Why torment her like that? She had nothing to do with the so-called 'crime'. And only the one coffin...It's like he somehow knew Shareella would wake up eventually, have to break her way out, and find the aftermath as further punishment."
Almost like he is seeing an echo of something that was once here, he again sees the women in red. She is beautiful, yet the women has pain and sadness in her eyes. But what strikes him the most is her anger as she seems to look toward the coffin. Then, she fades away again, out of sight. Again, no one else seems to have seen her.
The girl leaves the 11th pillar and methodically begins to head back toward the pool for the 12th head. Meanwhile, it appears the sultan guards with heads restored are becoming less ethereal, and more skeletal as the ritual continues. On the floor, a strange surface-level red color seems to ungulate toward the doorway, giving the appearance that it is flowing out of the room.
Zarbyn surmises that the time to break the ritual will be immediately after the 12th guard is assembled and she begins heading back. The pattern: Retrieve the head from the pool, a body forms near a pillar, go to the body and attach the head, count, the body rises and stands motionless. He and the others suspect that something terrible happens once she is done counting to twelve.
From before:
For now, the ghostly skeletons are unmoving. He reflects on Amdaengs comment: "I don't think we're going to like what happens when she stops counting" He reflects on his warlock training. Calamity could strike if a ritual such as this is broken at the wrong time. There would be a particular time and perhaps actions needed to disturb the ritual so that it does not reset.
Iólinder
In his studies of undead, ghosts, and spirits, Iólinder sees these ethereal men (spirits) beginning to turn into skeletons, losing their features from life (hair, skin, eyes). They are turning into undead skeletal warriors before his eyes. When the ritual is complete, he is certain they will become solid, animate, and attack. The problem is, the child is some sort of ghost or haunted spirit. Her powers will be much greater than that of the skeletal guards, likely including the ability to cause fear and even life drain. From a war-cleric strategic perspective, the party will do better in some sort of formation by using the features of the room to limit attacks. (OOC: In other words, in Owlbear rodeo, suggesting that the party gets into a strategic grouping and gets ready for combat)
As Lira hers the answers fromNemset, she begins to feel a sense of rage. A story in which Shareella was one of kindness and compassion, being put into this coffin, clawing her way out, and seeing this gruesome sight. Her evolution into darkness, caused by one man's jealousy. She also recalls the end of The River of Blood story:
But Shareella had unknown vampiric origins. Possessing supernatural powers, her body slowly healed over several years. Eventually, she rose from her resting place and learned of the cruel fate of her daughter and Nemset. She made a dark pact with a powerful Ice demon from the Circle of Primus and broke out of the tomb. Seeking revenge for the cruelty she endured, she used her demon-enriched powers to encase the sultan's palace in ice, freezing all of its inhabitants. Exhausted from her spent rage, she fell into a deep frozen sleep, deep beneath the Icefinger mountains. However, the ice demon had larger plans and covered all of Titan in an Age of Ice before the gods confined him in the Plane of Obsidian, one of the seven wretched planes charted in the Pit.
'Uhm, guys...'Iólinder said hesitantly as he looked over his shoulder. 'We might want to hurry it up. From the looks of it those spirits are going to be very real very soon.' He clutched his shield tighter in his hand. Multiple questions were running through his head, each one more vague than the last. Finally he blurted out: 'Your daughter is in trouble with the sultan. What can we do to help her?'
Vydar continues casting fire bolt until the ice is sufficiently destroyed. Then he nods to the questions he’s told to ask.
Once the scroll is activated he repeats the questions (minus the disregarded ones) to the scull they are assuming belongs to Namset. Starting with liras question. “What do you know about Sheerlea?”
The skull's mouth seems to move as the voice of a woman is heard.
"Ah, Shareella was my beloved. The most beautiful person in the kingdom, loved by all for her kindness and generosity. First a slave, then concubine, then bride, a Sultana. My lover. Throat sliced open....Blood, Blood, Blood." The empty eye sockets seem to grow distant as if the answer was all the magic could pull from her.
Amdaeng held Ning tightly......this was all a little too......ghost story for her, she much preferred the company of the living even if they were trying to kill her.
"Hm...We could try asking for more information about Akharis and his powers. Maybe that would help with breaking this ritual since it seems like he created it...Also the Cult of the Dragon. Their symbol is on the door to this chamber, after all."
"Make each question count. The more we know about the ritual, the cult, or anything could help."
Zarbyn moves into the room so that he is closer to Amdaeng.
'Cult of the Dragon, Akharis, yes: those are good topics.' Iólinder concurred. He turned his attention to the animated corpse.
'What can you tell us about Akharis and the powers he possessed?'
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
Valerius Sergius Publius: Dhampir Paladin - Vae Victus
As Vydar translatesIólinder‘s question, The eyes of the skull glow blue as the dead woman answers the second question.
"The Sultan Akharis was a cruel and arrogant ruler. He had three wives, Shareella being the third, but had a large number of concubines. He built this palace to get away from the heat of the desert. He believed that he was chosen by the gods to rule, and...that he was as powerful as the gods. He was jealous and controlling of his brides. He had some powers. He was very strong and was said to have lived over 100 years, although he seemed to not grow older. He could use magic to command obedience, he could burn people alive with a word. He had unquestioning loyalty of his subjects and took many slaves. To disobey the Sultan was to disobey god. He ordered the death of his guards, suspecting one of them of being intimate with Shareella."
Vydar translates the skulls response.
Meanwhile, the busy ghostly girl continues on her path, heading back for the 11th head.
"He didn't seem to age...Some of the inscriptions have mentioned time, and the girl seems stuck in time." Lira murmurs thoughtfully.
Amdaeng was feeling uncomfortable, the description of the sultan and his tyrannical behaviour reminded her a lot of Sukumvit Charavask, the Baron of her home city of Fang.....though as far as she knew he wasn't immortal.
Vydar is clearly uncomfortable with having to be the translator. But he tries to cover this up without letting the discomfort distract him. After recounting the scull's last answer, he turns back to the scull.
"Can you give us the details of the events leading up to your death?"
"I was dragged into this room. On the floor was the sultans guards, their heads all cut off. There was blood everywhere. Shareella was brought forward to this spot. A single coffin was in the middle of the dias, with the lid off. He made Shareella and I kneel and face each other. Then he took a blade and sliced my throat. As the light left my eyes and I went to sleep, I remember her eyes, filled with compassion and sadness and his eyes, filled with hatred and contempt."
As if from afar, the girl says, "Arvan neg"
Vydar
"Eleven”
Hearing the girl, Vydar’s head turns to face the ghost. He does this before recounting what the scull said.
“The girl. She skipped 12.” He looks back to those standing near him. “I’m not sure if we changed something or not by moving the skulls.”
He then quickly recounts what the skull says, she basically just confirmed what they already knew.
Lira looks over in surprise to see what spectral head the girl is holding.
(Ooc my mistake 11)
"If they were brought before this stone coffin with the apparent intent that they would be entombed together then how did she end up down the well with her daughter?"
Zarbyn feels like everything they discover matches some part of the stories they've heard but isn't sure what exactly corresponds to the present ritual.
"Could the coffin serve as a reminder of their horrible fate? Maybe ask something about the significance of the coffin?"
"It's strange...She didn't mention her daughter at all. Maybe the girl was brought in here after it all was said and done." Lira frowns sadly, perplexed. "Why torment her like that? She had nothing to do with the so-called 'crime'. And only the one coffin...It's like he somehow knew Shareella would wake up eventually, have to break her way out, and find the aftermath as further punishment."
Lev
Almost like he is seeing an echo of something that was once here, he again sees the women in red. She is beautiful, yet the women has pain and sadness in her eyes. But what strikes him the most is her anger as she seems to look toward the coffin. Then, she fades away again, out of sight. Again, no one else seems to have seen her.
The girl leaves the 11th pillar and methodically begins to head back toward the pool for the 12th head. Meanwhile, it appears the sultan guards with heads restored are becoming less ethereal, and more skeletal as the ritual continues. On the floor, a strange surface-level red color seems to ungulate toward the doorway, giving the appearance that it is flowing out of the room.
Zarbyn
Zarbyn surmises that the time to break the ritual will be immediately after the 12th guard is assembled and she begins heading back. The pattern: Retrieve the head from the pool, a body forms near a pillar, go to the body and attach the head, count, the body rises and stands motionless. He and the others suspect that something terrible happens once she is done counting to twelve.
From before:
For now, the ghostly skeletons are unmoving. He reflects on Amdaengs comment: "I don't think we're going to like what happens when she stops counting" He reflects on his warlock training. Calamity could strike if a ritual such as this is broken at the wrong time. There would be a particular time and perhaps actions needed to disturb the ritual so that it does not reset.
Iólinder
In his studies of undead, ghosts, and spirits, Iólinder sees these ethereal men (spirits) beginning to turn into skeletons, losing their features from life (hair, skin, eyes). They are turning into undead skeletal warriors before his eyes. When the ritual is complete, he is certain they will become solid, animate, and attack. The problem is, the child is some sort of ghost or haunted spirit. Her powers will be much greater than that of the skeletal guards, likely including the ability to cause fear and even life drain. From a war-cleric strategic perspective, the party will do better in some sort of formation by using the features of the room to limit attacks. (OOC: In other words, in Owlbear rodeo, suggesting that the party gets into a strategic grouping and gets ready for combat)
Lira
As Lira hers the answers from Nemset, she begins to feel a sense of rage. A story in which Shareella was one of kindness and compassion, being put into this coffin, clawing her way out, and seeing this gruesome sight. Her evolution into darkness, caused by one man's jealousy. She also recalls the end of The River of Blood story:
But Shareella had unknown vampiric origins. Possessing supernatural powers, her body slowly healed over several years. Eventually, she rose from her resting place and learned of the cruel fate of her daughter and Nemset. She made a dark pact with a powerful Ice demon from the Circle of Primus and broke out of the tomb. Seeking revenge for the cruelty she endured, she used her demon-enriched powers to encase the sultan's palace in ice, freezing all of its inhabitants. Exhausted from her spent rage, she fell into a deep frozen sleep, deep beneath the Icefinger mountains. However, the ice demon had larger plans and covered all of Titan in an Age of Ice before the gods confined him in the Plane of Obsidian, one of the seven wretched planes charted in the Pit.
'Uhm, guys...' Iólinder said hesitantly as he looked over his shoulder. 'We might want to hurry it up. From the looks of it those spirits are going to be very real very soon.' He clutched his shield tighter in his hand. Multiple questions were running through his head, each one more vague than the last. Finally he blurted out:
'Your daughter is in trouble with the sultan. What can we do to help her?'
William Brackwater: Human Fighter - The Windward Isles
Tyrgram, the Butterfly Knight: Dwarf Warlock - Secret of Greenwold
Iòlinder Corrach: Half Elf War Cleric - Allansia Adventure
Valerius Sergius Publius: Dhampir Paladin - Vae Victus